“You do realize that she will be upset if you die too, right?” Luke contends, his patience beginning to crack. “You’re her family just as much as I am.”
“Leave me alone! You and Nyx know nothing about me!” Sari shouts.
Luke is about to continue arguing, but Sari jumps to her feet and starts to walk away. The half-elf quickly gets to his feet to follow her when she spins around to hurl a dagger at him. He calmly walks toward Sari even after the dagger’s edge grazes his cheek. The gypsy tries to slap him once he gets close, but he effortlessly catches her by the wrist. Luke feels her attempt to pull free while he blocks her small kicks with the side of his leg.
“Let me go!” Sari snarls.
“Not until you promise to stay and listen to me,” Luke says, grunting with every kick to his thigh. “You won’t last long by yourself once our enemies start hunting you again. We have a better chance of surviving as long as we stay together.”
“I don’t want to be hurt again!” Sari exclaims, trying to slap Luke with her other hand.
“What are you talking about?”
“Leave me alone!”
“Not until you answer me.”
“No!” Sari howls with a violent shake of her head. Luke continues to restrain Sari, as she gets more and more panicked. Her grunts and groans of frustration become more urgent with every passing second. She finally makes a solid kick to Luke’s knee, but he pulls her close instead of letting go. Luke keeps her hands pinned behind her back and her struggling stops abruptly. He barely notices her heavy breath on his neck and how tense her body has become.
“This is bad,” the gypsy whispers meekly.
“What’s bad? You haven’t made much sense since I found you,” Luke complains without easing his grip on her wrists.
“I’m too close,” she states.
“I don’t ge-” starts Luke. His words are quickly forgotten when Sari slips from his grasp and grabs him by the face. A shock of pain from the thin cut on his cheek rips through his jaw, but the feeling of Sari’s lips against his causes the rest of his body to go numb. He can feel warm tears run down her cheeks and onto his chin before she breaks away, rushing to the edge of the river.
“I’m so sorry, Luke. I . . . I couldn’t help myself. You’re so cute and kind that I forgot myself,” Sari nervously rambles. She bends down to the water to splash herself in the face. “I’ll admit that I’ve been curious about how good a kisser you really are. Our kiss in the clearing was because of my spell, so I wanted to feel what a real kiss from you would taste like. Still, I shouldn’t have done it because it will only cause pain for both of us.”
“It’s no problem, Sari,” the stunned half-elf mentions, touching his lips.
“Of course it’s a problem!” Sari exclaims. “You have a fiancée.”
“You know that isn’t a problem for her, Sari. Kira would be happy to hear that I’ve been with someone else,” Luke uncomfortably explains. He joins Sari at the river’s edge to take a drink. “Gabriel only knows how many times she’s been mad at me for refusing to go along with this tradition. She even tried to set me up with Nyx while we were in Freedom. I understand that it supposedly helps one make sure that they chose the right husband or wife, but it feels so strange to me. Though, I don’t feel strange about it if it’s with you.”
Sari angrily turns on him and jabs her finger into his chest. “So, I would be nothing to you beyond a pre-marriage fling?”
“That isn’t what I meant, Sari,” Luke swears, backing away a few steps. “You’re sweet, fun, carefree, beautiful, and exciting. You and Kira are nothing like each other, which . . . I guess it would become a problem down the line.”
“Not if I disappear now. Nice meeting you and I hope that whole champion of Windemere thing works out for you,” the gypsy says rapidly. She turns to run away from Luke only to trip on her skirts and topple toward the river. Luke is quick to catch her before she hits the water, but they find themselves almost nose-to-nose.
“The gods sure have a horrible sense of humor when it comes to my life,” Sari claims, gently stroking Luke’s face.
“You sound like you’re giving in,” the half-elf whispers.
“I don’t want to, Luke. Why are you giving in so easily?” she asks, her eyes looking away.
Luke thinks carefully and glances at the forest around them. “As much as I love Kira, I fear that I might go on an adventure and never see her again. There is even the risk of me being gone for years and she moves on without me. I don’t mean to say that you’re a substitute for her, but being near you makes me forget about my worries. I guess the part of me that wants to keep wandering sees you as a soulmate. I know that I will have to make a decision between Kira and any other woman who I . . . connect with. I might as well make it a decision between two women who I can see myself loving for the rest of my life.”
“Love, huh? Then, explain the animalistic lust in your eyes whenever you look at me,” Sari whispers into his ear. “Not that I’m any better.”
“That would be because I find you intoxicating,” Luke states, grinning wolfishly.
“Let’s not sugarcoat any of this. It isn’t love we’re feeling for each other right now,” the gypsy says with a small kiss to Luke’s neck. “It’s lust. You find me intoxicating and I find you addictive after a single kiss. With any luck, it won’t go any further than this.”
“Why do you want it to stay as lust?” Luke asks, running a hand through Sari’s hair.
“I can handle lust, but I can’t handle love. I don’t want to fall in love and get left behind again,” Sari admits, her breathing growing heavy. “That’s the real reason why I don’t want to go with you and Nyx. This whole destiny thing is going to be dangerous. Any of us could die, so why should I get attached and lose another clan? My heart can only stand the loss of one clan in my lifetime. I don’t want to test my heart anymore. So, please let me go and don’t drag me into this.”
“You know it won’t be so easy,” the forest tracker mentions. “Even if I don’t come looking for you, Nyx will hunt you down.”
“I know, but . . . I don’t want to be abandoned again,” Sari cries. She clutches Luke by his shirt and nearly pulls him to the ground. It takes most of his strength to pick her up and carry her away from the river. Luke considers putting her down, but decides to start walking back toward Haven.
“We’re going back to the party,” Luke announces.
Sari stops crying long enough to whisper, “Not like this.”
“If we show up like this then you’ll be forced to explain yourself to people,” Luke responds. He suddenly finds himself unable to move and realizes Sari has made herself immovable. “It may ruin the party and put Nyx in a bad mood, but it sounds like that is what you want. The only way to return to the party and not ruin it is for you to stop crying, get on your feet, and walk next to me.”
Sari wriggles out of his arms in order to stand in front of him, straightening her wrinkled skirts. “Can you give me until the end of the party to make my decision?”
“Of course,” Luke replies with a friendly smile.
“I might travel with you and Nyx since I have nowhere else to go,” Sari casually informs him. “I did plan on avenging my clan, so you can help me with that.”
Luke stares at her curiously. “Avenge your clan? When were you going to mention this?”
“I didn’t think it would come up.”
“Now, you’re being ridiculous.”
“I had my reasons. For example, I didn’t want to travel with you and risk falling in love with the boy I met when he was dead,” Sari rants with her cheeks slowly becoming flushed. “You make me feel safe and happy, Luke. I haven’t felt this way since I lost my clan. Now, I have to decide if my vengeance is worth the heartbreak that I may have to endure from your death or being abandoned by you.”
“So, how long ago did your feelings of attachment for me start?” Luke inquires with a charming grin on his face.
<
br /> “When did your feelings of lust for me start?” Sari counters, matching his grin.
“It was when I first saw you in Kalam’s lair,” Luke admits, surprising Sari with his quick reply. “You were gorgeous. Even though you were covered by dirt there was something about you that attracted me. I think it was the fire in your eyes that drew me in. Now, you answer.”
“Nah,” Sari giggles with a playful spin.
“Hey!” Luke exclaims, reaching out to catch the gypsy by the wrist. He pulls her in for a kiss that bends her backwards, forcing her to grip his shoulders. It is a long kiss that is broken by the sudden intrusion of applause. Luke looks up from Sari to see Nyx stepping out from behind a tree.
“Beautiful form,” states the grinning caster.
“What are you doing here?” Luke nervously asks.
“I just came to see how you two were doing,” Nyx answers with an evil smile.
Sari hangs her head upside down and glares at Nyx “What have you done, Nyxie?”
“We have a party to return to,” Nyx states, ignoring the cold stares from her friends.
“Hold on! Did you set us up?” Luke asks.
“Only if you think I manipulated your emotions and forced you into something that neither of you wanted. I mean, I did all three of you a favor here,” Nyx explains while beaming with pride at her success. “I have Kira bugging me to help you find another woman just to make her feel better. Sari keeps going on about how cute your face is and what she would love to do to you. Then, I have to try to ignore you undressing her with your eyes and whining about your open relationship.” Nyx pauses to rub her eyes. “Luke, you have to realize that did not hide the fact that you wanted Sari.”
“She’s right. You were pretty obvious,” Sari agrees before turning an angry gaze on Nyx. “I’m angry that you upset me to get me to run away, so Luke could console me. I will admit that it was a great trick, but that doesn’t mean I like your methods.”
“Don’t act so innocent. You knew what was going on the moment Luke found you,” Nyx contends, leaning against a tree.
Luke looks at Sari, his expression hurt and confused. “Did you know?”
“I may have had an inkling of what was going on, but I was too upset and lonely to fight it,” the gypsy admits. She reaches out to stroke Luke’s cheek, hoping to wipe his frown away.
“So, was anything you told me the truth?” growls Luke as he eases his grip on Sari.
“Everything I said was completely true with a few . . . exaggerations here and there,” Sari answers, moving her hands to Luke’s arms. She jumps into the air, flipping around Luke until she is standing behind him with her arms comfortably wrapped around his neck.
Luke is still glaring angrily at Nyx. “You were never blind.”
“That was a real accident. I’m working on aura sight alone. It’s awkward, but it means Zephyr doesn’t have to waste his time with me,” Nyx says, waving her hand over her eyes. “Are you really that angry with me? In the end, I’m the only one who suffers. You get to lock lips with a cute gypsy while emotionally satisfying your rich, beautiful fiancée. The only downside is that some day you will have to choose between them, but you’ll find a way to survive that disaster like you always do. Meanwhile, I’m stuck having to watch this cuddly display. I feel sick already, so I’m going to get started on my next round of drinking. I’m going to need it with you two as my traveling companions.”
“Just one thing before we go, Nyx,” Luke mentions as he undoes Sari’s hands.
“I think I know what you’re going to say, little brother,” the caster claims, sighing in exasperation.
Nyx snaps her fingers, releasing a blast of light in Luke’s face before sprinting away. Luke rubs at his eyes until they are clear enough for him to follow Nyx who is already a distant blur. He wastes no time chasing her with Sari straggling a few feet behind him. None of them notice several pairs of rainbow eyes peering from a hole in the trunk of dying oak. An amused cackle fills the air before the tree shudders and melts into a pool of steaming muck.
“Such foolish creatures,” hisses a bored, female voice.
*****
The Lich and Yola Biggs step out of the pulsing vortex and into the brightly lit hall of their master’s castle. Marble pillars rise to the arched ceiling where a mural of demons and angels battling emanates a soft glow. They ignore the grinding of stone teeth and heavy breathing from the twenty gargoyles that decorate and protect the room. Yola stretches her arms over her head before skipping over to one of the wall-length windows and peering outside. She giggles at the sight of thousands of chaos elves working in the farms, demonic slave drivers whipping at them.
“Why do I enjoy their suffering?” the goddess casually asks.
“Because you’re a sadistic monster with more power than brains,” the Lich replies, taking out Kalam’s spellbook and caressing the binding.
“You say the sweetest things, Tyler,” Yola coos, her cheeks turning neon red.
“Somebody stop him!” Trinity shouts from the far side of the room.
The Lich sees the chaos elf running with her bleeding arms dangling uselessly at her sides. A few yards ahead of her is Kayn who is covered in blood and wielding an elegant bastard sword. Two of the gargoyles leap off their pedestals, swooping down at the escaping gypsy. A wall of wind rolls ahead of the monsters, but the gypsy warrior stubbornly pushes through. The blast launches Trinity off her feet, sending her into a pillar where she slumps to the ground and passes out.
“I’ll get her to safety,” Yola Biggs announces.
“You just don’t like fighting,” the Lich mutters, watching Kayn behead one of the gargoyles.
“Just stop him with a spell,” the goddess angrily orders.
“It’s almost too . . . what in Windemere?” the Lich gasps, his ice spell deflected off the bastard sword. The blast of ice hits the remaining gargoyle, which plummets and shatters against the ground.
“A reflection blade? He must have broken into Vile’s armory,” the Lich pathetically panics. “I told that little bastard to keep his collection away from the dungeon.”
“Give her back to me!” Kayn screams. He races across the hall and launches himself at the undead necrocaster.
The gypsy puts all of his rage and strength into an overhead chop, but the Lich quickly sinks into the ground. The sword hits the stone floor with a metallic ringing that echoes through the room. Kayn whirls around when he feels a cold breeze from behind, catching the Lich as he rises out of the ground. He tries to slice the Lich’s head off with a powerful swing of his sword. The instant it takes for Kayn to pull his arms back gives the Lich enough time to instinctually get his hands up. Too late, the Lich remembers he is still holding Kalam’s spellbook.
“No!” the necrocaster shrieks a moment before the book explodes. The Lich transforms into black smoke and is dispersed to the far corners of the room by the explosion. The necrocaster watches Yola and Trinity get hit by the magical shockwave, knocking them to the ground. He is barely able to see Kayn getting hurled into the open portal, which shimmers and shatters as the gypsy passes through.
“You idiot!” the Lich screeches from all over the room. His disembodied voice feels like nails on a chalkboard as it rises in pitch. “How could you leave the portal open? That was just asking for something to go wrong!”
“I never had a problem with it before,” Yola contends as she gets to her feet and drops Trinity to the ground. “Besides, you’re the one who used a potent spellbook as a shield. The same spellbook that you have spent days trying to get your hands on. So, if I’m an idiot then you’re a moron.”
“I didn’t say I wasn’t a fool for what I did. I freely admit that I ruined a lifetime of planning,” the Lich says. The black smoke begins to collect in the center of the room and take a solid form. “Now, we have to explain to the master that one of his important prisoners escaped after maiming Trinity. We don’t even know if he encountered Vile or Nyder. He mus
t have gotten his hands on Vile since he had that magic weapon. I wouldn’t be surprised if that militaristic runt is dead, which means this is an even bigger disaster. The two of us might be the only ones left in one piece, but we’ll be killed once the master gets involved.”
“Maybe the gypsy ate Vile and absorbed his knowledge, which is how he escaped,” Yola suggests with an innocent smile on her face.
The Lich stares at her in shock and frustration. “And the others wonder why I have little faith in the gods when the only deity I know is dumber than a mentally deficient troll.”
“That wasn’t nice . . . and some of the words were too big,” the goddess whines, stomping her foot on the stone floor. Sparks erupt from her heel and singe Trinity’s face, causing the chaos elf to moan.
“Silence!” booms a thunderous voice from the ceiling.
Neither Yola nor the Lich look up as a regal form gently floats out from the ceiling picture. The tall, muscular man is dressed in nobleman’s clothes of a style that has not been seen in centuries. His high-neck shirt of royal blue shimmers as if made of water and his black breeches are darker than a moonless night. A frightening crackle fills the air when he flexes his dark red-gloved fingers. The man’s face is chiseled with a short, ebony beard that runs from one cheek to the other, covering the entire chin in finely combed hair. His skin is healthy and sun-licked, which is a surprising appearance on the shadow-covered continent of Shayd. The man’s eyes are yellow orbs filled with a dark malice that makes Yola and the Lich cringe in terror-filled anticipation.
“He has escaped,” the man says in a deep, yet sensual, voice.
“Yes, master. I am very sorry for this,” the Lich apologizes with a low bow.
“Sniveling cockroach,” the man sighs. “You had nothing to do with this, except that you returned too late to help.”
“Baron Kernaghan! The Lich’s new spellbook was destroyed,” Yola tattles in a child-like voice. Her reward is a stab of searing pain in her skull that forces her to arch her back until the back of her head touches her heels.
“I am not in the mood for your antics, hunted one,” Kernaghan states before aiming a wry smile at the Lich. “I am aware of what happened to the spellbook, but it is of no concern. The tricks of Kalam are nothing compared to what I can do. Isn’t that right, my loyal servant?”
Legends of Windemere: 03 - Allure of the Gypsies Page 52
